


heaven's here (it's right where you're standing)

by Doodsxd



Series: D&D Works [14]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Dungeons & Dragons - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dungeons & Dragons, Beaches, Country & Western, Cowboy Hats, Cowboys & Cowgirls, Day At The Beach, Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Dungeons & Dragons Campaign, Dungeons & Dragons References, F/M, First Kiss, Flirting, Horse Racing, Horseback Riding, Horses, Inspired by Dungeons & Dragons, Making Out, Mentions of Racism, No Dungeons & Dragons Knowledge Required, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Sexual Tension, Silly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:22:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29069493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doodsxd/pseuds/Doodsxd
Summary: “What in the world do you think you’re doing?” The woman asked, horrified, as she saw none other than Jesse climbing up the wall, towards her window. “Get down! You’re going to fall!”“But I wanna talk to you.” He answered, foot failing him, making him almost fall, wasn’t it for his mechanic arm keeping a firm grip on the ledge.“You could have knocked on my door, you know.” Yasfa couldn’t help but smile, despite fear’s grip on her throat.“And what’s the fun in that?” He asked.
Relationships: Yasfa/Jesse Mclaine
Series: D&D Works [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2069412
Kudos: 1





	heaven's here (it's right where you're standing)

**Author's Note:**

> title from aly&aj slow dancing  
> i hope yall enjoy it :)

**heaven's here (it's right where you're standing)**

  
  


The day had been awful in so many senses, Yasfa had no idea where to even start. 

The duke had been a dick, as usual, the hunt had been a disaster and she spent the last _eight hours_ trying to find work with no luck. Grultar and his family were out-of-town due to racism against him and his daughter - which also made the genasi’s blood boil - and the guild was almost empty after the guard started getting harsher and harsher on its members, demanding that they reveal their magic and justify every little move they made. It was tyranny, plain and simple. 

She wanted to drink, but wasting money on alcohol was not something she would do in her present situation. She also wanted to have a good spar with Siegrun, work out her anger, the cackling energy around her that was probably keeping customers away scared, but the woman had been injured and was currently on bedrest, all wrapped up in bandages. The only thing that made Yasfa feel a little better about that situation was that, while medicated out of her mind, Siegrun had asked for Jin - who had gone to her and hadn’t left her side since. Which was, you know? _Cute_. 

It was too much, too quick. Mind swirling, Yasfa walked out of the guild, her eyes snapping to a large figure tied to the building’s side. 

_Mayo_. 

Thinking quickly, Yasfa went back inside, looking for Barnaby. “Hey, where is Jesse?” 

“He spent the night on a lookout and will most likely sleep for the whole day, miss Yasfa.” The man answered with a bright, receptive smile. “Do you want to leave a message to him?” 

She bit her lip. “Yes. Tell him I’m taking Mayo out on a ride, but I’ll come back in a few hours, please?” 

“Surely, miss.” Barnaby nodded his head, taking a note of her message on his little notebook. 

That done, Yasfa walked back outside and approached Mayo gently. The horse merely snorted, but accepted her pat to his snout. 

“Don’t let me fall, alright?” She asked him, earning another snort as an answer. 

She struggled a little to put herself on top of the horse - she had the strength, but balance and practice were areas she was not that good at -, but managed regardless. 

And then, doing like she saw people do countless times, she lightly tapped the horse’s ribs with her heels, holding onto the mouth harness. 

Mayo seemed to catch onto her uncertainty, because he just strolled at first. All she had to do was to stay on top of him, which was enough work on its own, and guide him where she meant to go. 

When they finally reached the outskirts of town, away from prying eyes, Yasfa sighed and steeled herself. “Let’s try this faster, shall we, boy?” And the tap to his ribs was firmer this time, signaling that she wanted to go faster. 

Mayo obeyed, trotting faster towards the bald spot on the dirt between the trees that signaled a trail that people used often enough for vegetation not to grow. 

Yasfa tried to hold on, but suddenly the world spun around and she was on the floor, face first on mud. 

“Damn.” She pried herself off of the floor, watching as Mayo came back to her, making a sound that made it seem he was laughing at her. “Ha-ha. Hilarious.” Was her retort, but she was laughing too while she cleaned her face. 

Five minutes later she was back on the saddle, holding on tighter with her thighs around the animal’s torso. “Am I hurting you?” No answer. “Gods, I hope I’m not. Let’s go.” The genasi tapped the horse’s ribs with her heels once again, prompting him forward. 

Out of reach from prying eyes, Yasfa fell about five more times before her and Mayo found any sort of rhythm between them, but they ended up on the beach, like she meant to. 

Mayo tapped his feet on the soft sand, as if trying to communicate. 

“What’s it, boy?” She asked, frowning. Yasfa looked for danger, but there was nothing around them. Then she looked forward, feeling the wind on her skin, the broad spence of sand in front of them. “You wanna run, don’t you?” 

A huff. 

“Should I come off of the saddle?” She offered. “I don’t want to hold you back. You should have your fun, too.” 

This second huff sounded angry, as if the horse as if offended at the suggestion. 

“Alright, alright.” Yasfa lowered her body almost completely on top of his, holding onto the harness, but also keeping her arms almost around the horse’s neck. “Do your worst, boy.”

Mayo neighed and put himself on his two back feet before dropping on a sprint, crossing the beach. The wind smelled a little salty, fresh and pure, and the sunset glimmered orange, yellow, pink and pale blue, reflecting on the glittering water almost seamlessly, making it impossible to see where the sky began and the sea started. 

With her heart racing, Yasfa slowly managed to bring her body to a somewhat upright position to see and feel it all better, the full-body experience cleansing her soul from the horrid, horrid day that she had. 

All that - the speed, the power of the steed under her, the colors, the wind on her face - that felt like freedom. It was incredible, addictive, and she wished for it to never end. 

About an hour later, while she sat beside Mayo on the sand, sharing apples and carrots with him while watching the sky go from blue to yellow, from yellow to red, and then to that deep blue hue peppered with the little twinkling diamonds that announced the night, Yasfa noticed that Jesse had been right. She was, indeed, exhausted, like Jesse suggested she would be, despite Mayo being the one who did all the work for them. 

“Thanks for today, boy.” She caressed the patch of fur between his eyes. 

Mayo huffed and bumped his face on hers a little clumsily, sniffing on her hair. Yasfa laughed and put her forehead to his, caressing the mane on top of his head, smiling. 

Yasfa was glad to notice on the way home that the horse trusted her enough to rely on her cues while walking in the complete darkness, as she could see much better than him. The ride back was much calmer - and steadier - than before as they reached an understanding, enjoying the crisp night air around them. 

Back at the guild, the genasi had been finishing brushing off the sand from Mayo’s fur with a soft brush provided by Barnaby, having already fed and watered the horse, when a voice snapped her out of the trance from the repetitive motions of the brush. 

“You two look like you had a hog-killin’ time together.” 

Yasfa stopped moving her hand and turned her head. Not that she needed to - she’d recognize his voice talking low in a horde at this point - but she wanted to see him, have a brief glimpse. Just to check if he was OK. 

_Liar_ , her brain provided. 

Jesse wore a red button down - only buttoned a little over halfway, to her complete despair - with dark pants and his usual casual gear, and the hat she had made him on. 

He looked like a freaking _snack_ . And _fuck_ if she wasn’t starving. 

“Yeah, we did.” She smiled, turning back to keep on brushing. Avoid eye-contact, avoid the feeling rattling her bones, making her knees weak. “I hope you didn’t need him this afternoon. I took him without asking, I’m sorry.” 

“Not to worry, miss.” She could hear him walking towards her until he gave two friendly slaps to Mayo’s backside. “I’m sure Mayo was thrilled to carry such an ace-high angelica all around town.” 

“What?” Yasfa frowned, confused. 

His lopsided smile had her regretting looking at his face. “Nothing.” Jesse turned to her, making her heart beat in her throat. “So. What got your dander up that you decided to fork a hoss for the first time? Did that coot of a duke do anything to get your back up?” He asked, all casual arms leaning on Mayo. She envied their relationship a little. 

And then Mayo moved his backside, effectively dislodging Jesse’s arm and almost making him fall, so. Not that much envy, after all. 

Yasfa laughed as Jesse fumbled to put himself back upright, a little closer than he was before. 

“It’s alright. The day was just… frustrating.” Yasfa confessed. “Thank you for being so understanding.” 

“Nah, don’t worry. Me and him are always at your disposal, m’lady.” He bowed down playfully, eyes on hers. 

The genasi ended up chuckling again, feeling like a stupid teenager. “Thanks.”

“So.” He put his hands on his belt. “Shall we head to the saloon and have some deadshots to soothe that weary soul of yours?” Jesse offered her his arm courteously. 

“Alright.” 

Walking inside, Yasfa saw just about everyone she knew from the guild eating on the same table. Siegrun put her arm up, waving at them. 

“Hey! Come ‘round, greenie, I still haven’t told you about my adventure with the manticores!” The woman banged her large mug on the table unceremoniously, spilling some ale on poor Jin, who looked like nothing that Siegrun could ever do would bother him ever again, if it ever did - probably because she had called out for him when she was still halfway out of her mind, which was… a little telling, if Yasfa was to be honest. 

“I don’t wanna know about your hunt, you wench, I just wanna know if you didn’t completely ruin the hide. I’m supposed to _make_ something with that, remember?” Yasfa replied with a laugh, having finally reached a balance with Siegrun that allowed them both to throw playful insults to each other, to the absolute horror of the guild members, who never knew if at some point they’d burst into a fight or just drink themselves to a stupor together. 

“Ha! Then you’ll never have it!” Siegrun banged the table with her fist, making everything on it jump. Mimi took her wineglass from the surface protectively. “I’ll take it to the woman downtown and let her husband have his way with it!” 

“You wouldn't _dare_.” Yasfa bristled, accepting with a smile the chair that Jesse had pulled for her, tipping his hat. 

After sitting on that table to eat, the night was a blur of great talk and wonderful food. At some point, Jesse’s arm snuck over the backrest of Yasfa’s seat. She couldn’t tell if she was sweating because of the warmth of the place itself, or from the lava that seemed to cascade over her skin from the point where his arm kept brushing the top of her shoulders and back of her neck. 

People started yawning one by one, excusing themselves to go to sleep. First it was Mimi, then Kiiara and Miaki snuck out; next it was Jin who got tasked with helping a very drunk Siegrun upstairs, blushing to the roots of his hair underneath Rodrik’s lewd jabs.

“Tired?” Jesse asked her in a low voice, under Og’va’s and Rodrik’s explosive laughter at something that… someone, she wasn’t sure who, had said. Her eyes had been dropping, body exhausted from the day, but Yasfa fought it valiantly, wishing for the moment not to end. 

But then, under those warm brown eyes, it wasn’t like she could lie. “Yes.” The genasi admitted. 

“Come on, I’ll accompany you to your room.” He stood up and got his coat, offering her his hand. 

As much as she could not lie, she also couldn't say no. 

They walked upstairs in a comfortable silence, stopping by the door with an _8_ engraved to it. 

Yasfa turned to Jesse again, teeth worrying over her lower lip as she tried not to avoid his eyes. That would be rude, but the urge to look down and hide ran deep inside her veins. 

“Thanks again for lending me Mayo.” She said, fiddling with her key. 

“Like I told ya, miss, me and Mayo are always at your disposal.” He answered. His smile, funnily enough, felt quite like clinging to a horse while it ran to a beautiful sunset on a beach. 

“Well, thanks.” Yasfa replied. “So… goodnight.” 

“Night, miss Yasfa.” Jesse tipped his hat. “Sleep tight and don’t let mosquitoes bite.” 

She turned to open her door with a chuckle, stopping to see him walking back to the saloon. Just a last glance before she entered her room and shut the door. 

Yasfa threw herself on her bed face first, feeling like a hurricane was forming inside her chest. Tired as she was, sleep simply didn’t come to her, mind swirling over everything and nothing at the same time. 

A couple of hours later, she’d wager, the genasi heard this weird noise coming from the outside. She sat up on her bed and moved to the window, opening it to see what the hell was that. 

“What in the world do you think you’re _doing_?” The woman asked, horrified, as she saw none other than Jesse climbing up the wall, towards her window. “Get down! You’re going to fall!”

“But I wanna talk to you.” He answered, foot failing him, making him almost fall, wasn’t it for his mechanic arm keeping a firm grip on the ledge. 

“You could have _knocked on my door_ , you know.” Yasfa couldn’t help but smile, despite fear’s grip on her throat. 

“And what’s the fun in that?” He asked, hand slipping. 

Lucky him, Yasfa was able to get him by the back of his coat and pull him up until he was perched on her windowsill. 

“Thank you, miss.” A boyish grin adorned his face. 

“What was so urgent that you couldn’t _knock_ , you crazy cowboy?” Yasfa demanded, holding him by the front of his shirt, still afraid that he was going to fall, despite his position being much steadier now. 

Jesse chuckled. “I just wanted to make sure you know that it’s fine for you to take Mayo anytime you wish.” 

“You already told me that.” She arched one eyebrow. “Did you have to climb a wall to tell me that?” 

“‘Course, miss. My ma would have my hide if I wasn’t polite to a kind lady like yourself.” He had such a stupid shit-eating grin on, she wasn’t sure she shouldn’t just drop the idiot. 

“Humph.” Was her answer. 

The seconds ticked by and silence stretched between them. Jesse looked like he was trying to think of something to say. Yasfa gave up. 

“That’s the part where you tell me that there’s a condition for me riding Mayo.” She said, tone slightly uncertain. 

“What?” He looked clueless. 

“This is the part where you tell me that I have to pay a fee to ride Mayo.” Yasfa insisted, face heating in embarrassment. 

Jesse hummed. “And what fee would be that?” 

“You _know_ what fee!” Her face warmed up even more, skin probably three or four shades deeper than usual. 

“No, I don’t.” His smirk said he did. She should really throw him out of the window. “Why don’t you show me?” 

Yasfa halted, heart hammering on her throat. Oh fuck. Oh, holy shit. What if… what if he was just playing her, what if-?

After a few moments of hesitation, Jesse’s fingers came gently below her chin, lifting the genasi’s face up. “This is the part where you kiss me, miss.” 

It was like a dam broke inside of her. Yasfa held him by the shirt still, pulling him close, while both of his hands came to cup her face gently, _oh so gently_ , like she was made of porcelain instead of stone. 

Feeling her heart swell at his kind touches, the woman allowed her other hand to sneak behind his neck, fingers threading through that infuriating hair. His beard felt rough even against her tough skin, but the sensation was quite welcome. Even if it weren’t, however, it wasn’t like she could just _stop_ kissing him. No way in hell. Not while his lips felt like a glass of water after a thousand years in the desert. 

She missed time and space while they moved. Once she noticed, her back was against the wall next to the window, his hands squeezing her wide hips, confessing to a hunger that had something irrevocably stirring awake from a deep slumber inside of her. 

She moaned when his lips moved down her neck. He spent quite a while there, kissing and licking and biting, and, at first, Yasfa hadn’t been quite sure why, although she wasn’t complaining - until she remembered. _Tough skin_. 

“Are you trying to _mark_ me?” 

His laughter answered the question by itself. 

Yasfa lightly slapped the back of his head. “You weirdo.” 

“What? Can’t have all those duds in town thinking you’re free for the taking.” His eyes looked darker, sporting a fire on them - a fire that mirrored hers in more ways than one. 

The woman straightened her clothes, getting a grip on herself. “Alright, off with you.” 

“What? Already?” Jesse pouted. 

“We haven’t even gone on a date yet.” She pointed out. 

“Yes, about that. I’m jealous of Mayo now. He got you all for himself for the whole afternoon, and I got nothin’.”

“Does this look like _nothing_ to you?” Was her reply, although she understood what he meant with the joke. 

“All I’m saying,” His forearm came to rest on the wall beside her head as he tilted himself forward, posing tantalizingly close to her. “is that I should get a chance to have you all to myself, too.” 

_Fuck_ . That absolute _devil_ . He was handsome, charming, and, to seal her doom, he _knew_ it. “Alright. I’ll go on a date with you.” 

“That shines!” He pecked her on the lips once, twice, until the pecks became longer kisses and they were back at it, his chest pressing her against the wall, her hands on the nape of his neck, his wandering over the sides of her body. 

“Enough,” Yasfa pushed him away, breathless and a little more than _excited_ for that date of theirs. “Off with you, come on.” The woman guided him back to the open window. 

“Can’t I use the door?” He asked, a teasing lilt to his voice as he made his way through the windowsill. 

“Nope.” She emphasized the ‘p’ at the end and shut the window, then the curtains, throwing herself once again face first on her bed. 

Yasfa listened carefully to the sounds of him making his way down the wall, right until she heard the telltale _thump_ of his boots hitting the ground. 

The woman hugged her pillow rather pathetically, chest too small for everything she felt, ribcage expanding and contracting with each breath she struggled to pull in. 

But the hurricane inside of her was gone, replaced by horseback rides, sunsets and stolen kisses in the middle of the night, and really. 

The world wasn’t fixed, there was still much to do, but just remembering how his arms felt around her already had her feeling like there was still hope. Like it could be better than just dukes and racists and an almost empty pouch. 

And while she _knew_ she didn’t need him - she stood on her own two feet through her whole life, after all - with her hand on his, she knew she would feel like she could conquer the world, and he’d do his best to help her get there with a boyish smile on his lips and a tilt of his hat. 

Yasfa didn’t really need the world on a silver platter or anything fancy, though. 

Just a couple of kisses in the middle of the night and she was sure she’d be okay, ready to bounce back and take the world by the horns, because a man like that could make a girl feel like there were no bad days at all with nothing but a grin. 

She couldn’t help but smile like a fool, like a teenager in love, like she had drunk a whole gallon of fairy drool - euphoric, and optimistic, and giddy, and so, _so incredibly happy_ \- looking forward to it all. 


End file.
